Inhuman Affection R Extend Edition
by Mr.Carl Clover
Summary: -On Break- (AU Revised) As a result of the merging worlds, all great evils have been temporarily put to rest. With this in mind, Ragna the Bloodedge has found his life to be hollow, and doesn't know what's wrong. Summoned by Rachel Alucard, she confronts him and challenges him to a duel to help him discover what he truly needs.
1. Chapter 1

Inhuman Affection R Extend Edition

A Ragna x Dizzy Pairing FanFiction -Alternate Universe-

A When World's Collide Spin-Off Story

By: Mr. Carl Clover

(Author's Note: OK, I know A LOT of you want to see this one updated and if it wasn't for that fact, I wouldn't even bother with this story since there's so much to do on the other remastering. However, it might be nice to balance a love story with all the seriousness of the main FanFiction from which this comes from. I can't promise this story will be a continually active work or be any good as an update, but I am going to try my best. I hope that's good enough for all of you heh)

Chapter 1: The Void and Joy of the Heart

Roses in bloom, pumpkins scattered about the air, and the glorious sounds of sipping tea filled the delicious fragrant air in the back courtyard of the Hellsing Manor. This time of year is when everything was at its finest in appearance and feeling. The roses' bold rouge coloring light up the scenery like splashes of color on a black and white painting; wonderful smells of the wind from the garden waft through the air with the majestic scent of the devil's promises both sweet and cruel. Of course, the tea served on the beautiful days this time of year created the ideal experience of perfection according to Ms. Rachel Alucard's standards, which in turn were next to impossible to meet. Unlike the rest of the beautiful days of this time a year, today was especially...stupid. It was the only thing keeping the perfection that was the manor's garden on this fine evening.. Ragna glared at Rachel from across the patio table; his brow forever furrowed with his dual colored eyes full of frustration and unamusement. His chin rested in the palm of his hand as he watched Rachel Alucard enjoy her afternoon tea and sweets, unallowed to interfere with the penalty of death waiting in the horizon. Growls came from within his throat as he gently rolled the fingers of his other hand upon the table. Along with his fingers his foot began to tap impatiently, wondering as to why she would summon him here without telling him that he'd have to wait through tea time. Valkenhayn, her loyal butler and dear friend refilled her cup of tea, looking over at Ragna's impatient posture as she took her time.

"Madam Rachel, perhaps you shouldn't leave your guest to himself when you yourself summoned him into your presence," Valkenhayn suggested, trying to show sincerity to Ragna's ever growing impatience. Rachel didn't so much as move her eyes to Valkenhayn's words, clearly illustrating her point of authority in this situation. Valkenhayn bowed to Ragna as an apology as he stood at Rachel's side. Ragna just rolled his eyes off to the side, unable to stand looking at the 'rabbit' any longer. With the soft clashing sound of her fork being laid upon her dessert plate and the final tap of her teacup on its own plate, Rachel lightly dabbed her mouth and left it all to Valkenhayn to clean up. With a smile, Valkenhayn patiently removed all of the empty dishes from in front of Rachel and held them to himself.

"You may leave us now Valkenhayn," Rachel's posh, victorian voice ordered. With that, Valkenhayn gave them both a bow before disappearing into a void. Rachel's eyes then shifted to Ragna's. She found it kind of cute when he was disgruntled and about ready to just go off on someone, so cute in fact that she took joy in dragging out the worst in him at times. This evening was no different as his eyes shifted from the side and directly into hers.

"So, Ragna, how are things in your sad excuse of a life?" Rachel said with a smirk, taking joy in teasing the "Grim Reaper" as she did. Ragna balled up his fist that was set to rest on the table as his brow furrowed more than normal. He made a deep sigh from the pit of his stomach to calm himself enough to speak without the urge to strangle her being etched into his voice.

"I'm pretty sure you already know. You pretty much stalk me every day through your little visual spells that you have don't you? Ragna grumbled. Rachel smiled and shook her head innocently as her gaze softened up with his eye contact.

"Why on Earth would I take to such a boring task? I only check in from time to time to make sure you don't do anything exceptionally stupid," Rachel teased. Ragna shot Rachel a death glare as he bit through the usual taunting that she instantly gave him at every meeting. Ragna took another sigh to try and empty out the tension in his stomach.

"If you really want to know, Rabbit, all of these changes from when you and whoever it was you were working with had altered the world as well as my perspectives on life. Altering it to the point of frustration that I can barely stomach day to day. This merging thing that you did threw everything out of wack; I don't know where or who my enemies are, I don't know what's around the corner trying to kill me, it has just been one giant pain in my ass!" Ragna snarled, causing Rachel to glare back at him curiously.

"That doesn't differ from any other day of your life Ragna. I would appreciate it if you would elaborate a bit further," Rachel's posh voice grew more obnoxious by the second as he turned his face away from hers. Ragna grew uneasy as Rachel continually played the role of his psychologist on this fine evening. Rachel looked over him carefully then gave a tilt of her head.

"Could it be that...you desire love, Ragna?" Rachel smirked as Ragna flinched from her words. He turned his face away as it grew a shade of red that matched his very clothes perfectly. A soft growl vibrated in his throat as he tried to avoid the subject with his body language. Rachel's gaze refused to leave his presence, forcing him to turn back to her and give in to her chase.

"Tch...that word tends to make me cringe. You know...ever since I was a boy, I have done nothing but trained to fight. I never had any affection given to me, just bitter doses of crap that I have to deal with. Revenge, fighting for my life, it's all just an endless cycle of bullshit that refuses to end! So maybe that desire is buried deep down somewhere…" Ragna groaned letting his head hit the small table with his arms sprawled out around it. Rachel smiled and lowered her eyes to the sad, distraught Ragna that sat before her. Leaning forward, she made a reach across the table to gently run her fingers through his hair. To her surprise he didn't budge an inch while she brushed his rough, spiky hair, clearly showing signs of surrender.

"You aren't alone. Outside of your own, life isn't truly that simple for anyone. Every being in this world follows two sub conscious rules to their lives: They have a definitive reason for which they live and they also find things to console into in a sense make them complete. Unlike you who is free to do whatever you please, I am instead confined to minimal places, forever tied down by my fate to maintain the balance of this world. However, as large a burden as that is for me, it's the small things that make me happy and can keep me going. In my case it's brilliantly prepared tea and sweets. What you need to do is find it, find that missing consolement that you desire so. As usual, however, I'm probably wasting my breath on you," Rachel consoled as if she were more than just an acquaintance to him. Ragna gave her a subtle nod, giving a soft sigh as he rose his head up to look her in her smug eyes, actually taken by surprise as he was given some useful advice for a change. Rachel leaned back in her 'Nago Chair' and looked him over, trying to read his thoughts.

"Ragna, there is no doubt in my mind that you need to seek out the love of another" she said. Ragna growled and shook his head, trying to turn all of her words of wisdom into complete nonsense in his mind. It was his form of a defense mechanism whenever there was a subject that he really wanted to avoid at all costs. He balled up his fists and glared at Rachel with the frustration of a small child.

"Do you seriously believe that I can honestly buy into that crap? Love seems like it would be nothing but a pain in my ass, especially if things took a turn for the worst with my heart in a damn vice grip, " Ragna barked, doing everything he could to convince himself that he was wrong in believing what she had said. Rachel found herself giggling softly in amusement, finally getting a reaction out of the "Grim Reaper". Her mouth turned into a cocky smile, her eyes watching him like a fox at his reaction.

"With the reaction you are displaying before me, I would say without a doubt that you believe I'm right. Why fight such a thing such as love when you already fight everything else in this world? Hm...let's make things a bit more entertaining. How about you and I have a fight to determine the patch in which you want to go about with this subject manner. If you win, I'll shall leave you to your own without any more words on the subject. However, if you lose, you will seek out affection of another without any questions asked. Do we have a deal, 'Mr. Grim Reaper?'" Rachel said with a sleek smile, issuing the challenge to the "Black Beast" that snarled before her. Ragna then reached to the side of the table where Blood Scythe had been leaning up against it.

"Well then Rabbit, I guess I'll accept your challenge," Ragna said, breaking out of his mopey demeanor. Twirling it around effortlessly, Ragna sheathed Blood Scythe behind him. He quickly put on his game face, smiling in such an overconfident manner that it made Rachel shake her head. Lowering to her feet, Nago immediately formed into his natural umbrella shape and Gii rose up above her and beside Nago.

"It looks someone doesn't know what dealing with," Nago chimed in, mocking Ragna's determination.

"If you think you can beat our Princess, you are wrong!" Gii shouted, coinciding with Nago in their provocation. Ragna gave a large sketch to the sky, getting all the kinks out of his system. Cracking his and popping his collar, he was finally ready to rumble with the posh vampire.

"Prepare yourself Ragna, because I'm not going to take this confrontation lightly. I will make you bow into submission before me and follow my words!" The two of them stared down at each other waiting for the other to make a move. Deep down, Rachel knew that she didn't need to go about this with all of her might. So she thought she'd find it entertaining to watch Ragna try his hardest, which would make his submitting all the more satisfying.

"LET'S GO!" Ragna growled as he began his charge. Rachel stood in place, yawning softly as he jumped into the air for his first strike. Dashing through the air like the wind, Ragna unsheathed Blood Scythe and went for a strong slash at her head. She turned to the side watching as Nago met the blades tip with his fist, cause a burst of electricity to flash from the impact. He then went for another swing in the same spot that was once again parried by the amazingly fae cat. Dropping to the ground, Ragna dashed forward and went for a sweep to her feet. Rachel saw through his move and used her power of the winds to float above it casually. Before Ragna could balance himself back to his feet he was met with Gii being thrown at him like a projectile. It collided with his shoulder, pushing him onto his rear as Gii created a lightning rod before returning to her side. Baring his fangs like a wolf, he built a surge of dark energy, following up with a hard upward swing.

"INFERNAL DIVIDER!" he shouted as he launched off the ground. Rachel used another command of the wind to move herself out of the way. Nago playfully formed into a parachuted swing, to which Rachel sat upon until they met the ground. Rachel performed a pirouette, summoning various pumpkin funnels that flew around her like flies. As Ragna began his next charge, she used her index finger to point out at Ragna, the force of the wind shooting the funnels at him like bullets. Ragna raised his blade and cut down each funnel as it came within range, giving him the opening he needed to move in. Juking from side to side, he evaded the various projectiles that Rachel was shooting from the Nago cannon at her side. With each dodge, more and more lightning rods filled the garden, as if setting up chess pieces on a board. Clenching his teeth together, the Armagus on his hand opened, surrounding his fist as he dashed along the ground.

"HELL'S FANG!" he called as he flew by another shot. His fist made came in contact with Nago, who had formed into a shield. However, with Ragna's sudden burst of energy that followed, he knocked Nago away leaving Rachel open. With energy covering his blade his immediately swung for another Infernal Divider, which Rachel only avoided by an inch. Following Ragna with her eyes, she saw him smirk as his blade once again filled with energy. He quickly turned the sharp end of his blade down towards the ground and immediately descended upon her.

"NIGHTMARE EDGE!" he cried as he flew down with the speed of a bus. Rachel quickly kicked Nago with her foot, moving him into his form of chair. She sat upon it and gripped his arm rests, forming electricity all around her. Trying to shift his body, Ragna went to steer away from the thunderous trap but it was in vain. Colliding into it with Blood Edge, he felt a vicious surge of electricity surge through his body. As the electricity subsided, it immediately launched Ragna backwards until his back collided with one of the many prickly, black lightning rods that littered the area. Smoke created from the sizzling sting of the electricity fluttered off of Ragna's jacked as she used the rod as a wall to get back on his feet. Finally realizing what his back was up against, yelped and immediately jumped away from it as it burst into a surge of electricity.

"Sword Iris" she spoke firmly as her hand was raised. Ragna dodged around the various lightning embedded rods as if it were an obstacle course. Narrowly escaping, he found himself slipping on a patch of roses, dropping him to his back. Rachel couldn't help but let a small fit of laughter escape her lips as she watched this sorry excuse of a battle. In frustration, Ragna pashed his hands on to the ground before using Blood Scythe as a crutch to raise to his feet.

"Is this truly the strength of your resolve? If I didn't know any better, I would say you are making an absolute fool of yourself on purpose," Rachel taunted stalwartly as she fell back into her Nago chair. She rested her elbow up on one of the arm rests then gently rested her chin in her dainty, pale hand. Ragna shook off the pain in his system and got back into his fighting stance. Rachel shrugged softly as she hopped back onto her feet, this time facing forward with confidence. Rachel used her wind to launch herself forward at Ragna, spinning like a dradle as she collided with his blade. Her dress felt like a dozen blades as Ragna defended with Blood Scythe. It made harsh scraping sounds as if clashing metal over and over again, stinging Ragna's ears like nails on a chalkboard. As her feet touched down she immediately hopped down on top of Nago and swept Ragna at his ankles, causing him to fall to the ground. As Ragna rose from the ground, he looked up to see Nago half formed with his muscled arm ready to strike down. Ragna quickly rolled back as Nago's chop met the ground, shooting up roses from the impact. Ragna suddenly charged a massive amount of power while Nago fumbled back into an umbrella, flying along the ground, Ragna's eyes lit up with rage.

"CARNAGE SCISSORS!" Ragna roared out. He viciously swung his blade downward, catching Nago arms. The force of the strike nearly spun Rachel in a full circle as his finishing blow of the attack erupted into her. Rachel found herself flying through the air as the massive amount of energy exploded violently on her frame. Forming Nago into a parachute swing once more, Rachel recovered and returned to the Earth gracefully. She looked down and saw a small gash of her dress, sizzling from the reckless use of power that Ragna had smashed her with. Ragna wiped the sweat that beaded on his forehead and gasped to catch his breath.

"What the hell is going on...normally when I fight with her it's never this one sided…" Ragna coughed from the pain deep in his stomach. The reckless use of his Armagus can both regenerate his vitality or drain his body of what energy is there, leaving him in a bind; having missed so many swings with the use of his power, his body was beginning to feel the burn from the overuse of his power. Slowly approaching, Rachel made her way towards Ragna as if the fight had clearly just ended. Planning to use this to his advantage, he decided to wait patiently until she was close enough for his grasp.

"Are you quite done? This is beginning to bore me," Rachel's boasting victorian voice chimed like a bell in his ears, signaling for him to make his move now. Ragna's eyes met hers with a grin to follow as he grabbed his wrist tightly.

"GOING INTO OVERDRIVE!" Ragna roared, completely catching Rachel off guard. As she went to dash backwards, Ragna slammed the tip of his blade into the ground, causing a burst of energy to propel her upwards. Throwing up Nago as a shield, Rachel tried to brace for impact with each blow Ragna was about to deliver. Ragna's whole body began to glow with the infusion of his Armagus, using every last ounce of it as if his life depended on it.

"GAUNTLET HADES!" Ragna yelled as he jumped up and slammed his fist into Nago, who cried out in intense pain. The force of the blow knocked him clear of her front as he swung his leg around surrounded with an intense wave of energy. Rachel found herself being blasted into the air once more, attempting to maintain her calm demeanor during the harsh assault. Ragna quickly lept into the air as his sword quickly shifted into the shape of a scythe. He then used it as a propulsion to roll into a violent strike.

"BLOOD SCYTHE!" Ragna's voice was overpowered by the sheer force of Blood Scythe's power sending Rachel to fly along the ground. As he body rolled along the ground, rose after rose shot up into the air, forming a roseless trail from her body. Nago quickly formed behind her as her back met with the crudely formed black fence that closed in her garden. Before Ragna had the chance to get close enough for his energy infused claw to grab a hold of her, the burst of power from his armagus wore off, causing him to fall to one knee from exhaustion. To his displeasure, but not to his surprise, Rachel slowly raised back to her feet, dusting off her dress as if nothing had just happened. Every time Ragna tried to raise to his feet, he felt himself drop back down, forcing him to literally kneel before Rachel. Upon Rachel's arrival, his vision began to blur; his body used all of its strength to try and raise up. Ragna then looked down to the dirt where he was surrounded with a puddle of blood. He watched as it dripped trickled down his boot and into the Earth; there wasn't going to be another chance, he had officially lost. When Ragna's eyes went up to Rachel once more, they were met by a firm smack from the back of her hand. Ragna's body rolled along the ground, causing him to yell in agony. Rachel then sighed as she flew over to him. She saw as his eyes closed and his body grew limp, passing out in the garden. Rachel slowly knelt down next to Ragna, pulling his head into her lap as he laid lifelessly before her. It wasn't long before Ragna came to. As he opened his eyes and looked around, he noticed he was back in his chair that he had been sitting in before the fight had begun. Going to move, he felt slight fits of pain, slowly healing as he looked at Rachel across the table. Noticing that he came to, Rachel placed her freshly made tea onto its small plate, locking her eyes with his in the state of superiority.

"It seems that your resolve was not nearly enough to entertain me for very long I'm afraid. But now, you have an all new resolve that you must work for ahead of you. Love is in the air Ragna, you just have to search for it," Rachel smiled as Ragna let out a disgruntled groan, laying his head onto the table to rest.

xxxxxx

With the soft ocean winds floating through the air and a beautiful sun hanging high in a cloudless sky, the Mayship was able to happily rest upon the sea of the Earth. Normally up high in the clouds, Johnny thought it'd be a pleasurable change in scenery for the crews complete relaxation. Every single member of the Jellyfish Pirates could be on board the deck, which was fairly rare due to the conflicting interests and work ethics between each member. Johnny laid out in the dead center of the deck; his hands found themselves resting upon the stomach of his well toned body, happily taking in the sun while the majority of his face stayed hidden beneath his jet black brimmed hat that made his look come alive. His head didn't meet with the deck boards however; it was placed comfortably in May's lap, who happily ran her fingers through his ponytail that was sprawled off to the side. Constant footsteps shook the boards of the deck as July and Augus continually sparred in hand to hand combat training. Due to their constant stomping and romping around, Sephy had finally give up on trying to keep the deck clean and figured it was time for her to try and not be compelled to do insane amounts of meticulous cleaning. All the while Febe, April, Octy and Novel set up lean back chairs and simply decided to enjoy the air and sun as it shined up on them on this perfect day. Bridget could be seen playing with March and Janus, having a fun time fooling around with his yo-yo and having tea with March and her stuffed penguin. Not everyone was out on the deck however; Leap was fixing up lunch for everyone. They had a great fishing haul so she thought it'd be lovely to piece together some fishy dishes for their delights. And then there was Dizzy who was resting quietly in her hammock in her quarters. Her eyes were not asleep however, instead they were buried in a book titled "Fairy Tales for Kids".

"As if from dream, the princess found herself falling high from the tower. The winds whisked through her beautiful hair and the winds carried her down as she fell with grace. Before she hit the ground, she was caught by the valiant knight who said that he would love her forever. With her heart racing and her body flustered, she and the knight leaned in on one another and shared a sweet...kiss," Dizzy blushed as she took in the story in its entirety. It wasn't all that long ago that she was unaware of the world around her and all the little things that gave it life. It wasn't until she met Johnny that she learned anything about the emotion called love. She didn't honestly understand it, but throughout the book she had been reading, she felt her heart flutter at the various times when the hero and princesses would kiss and fall in love. She once knew what love was, after all, she gave birth to a half gear child and married the prince that she read about in the fairy tales. However, after the merging of the two worlds, all the rogue Gears on Earth had been wiped from existence. With this, since she was a special Gear, only her memories were affected by the showers of crimson light. Dizzy could only remember her recent present living state, in other words, she could only remember her name and all the members of the Jellyfish Pirates and those heavily associated with them. As cruel a fate as it was, Johnny had done everything in his power to help her remember the times of the past and the people in it. Even with his strongest of efforts, her memories were constantly fuzzy; she could remember all of the Jellyfish Pirates taking her in, being allowed to by Sol Badguy with his faith in Johnny as a protector. However...the second time she was acquainted with the Jellyfish Pirates, all she could remember was a man all clad in white and blue. She struggled night and day for weeks to try and remember who that man was, only to be disappointed with her loss of the past. From then on, Dizzy decided that she would let go of her past, and focus her life in the now and the future.

"I wonder if I'll ever meet my own Sir Knight...the way he loves the princess and protects her with all of his might...I hope I can be that princess one day and have a brave Sir Knight come to my rescue. Hehehe look at me, I can't believe I'm talking about this aloud," Dizzy laughed nervously as she gently pressed her face to a page with the faded image of a knight from one of the stories. Blushing and nuzzling the image, she felt a wonderful warmth deep inside her heart and soul. As she hugged the book to her chest, Johnny slowly poked his head into her room, trying to disturb her as he observed.

"Ah it seems that my lovely Dizzy is finding her way to the feelings of love. She's growing up so fast. Before I know it, she'll be gone with some guy. Of course...I'm going to test him before I even considering handing her over hehe," Johnny whispered before disappearing away from the door again.

"Yes...a Sir Knight of my very own…", Dizzy whispered softly as she smiled and cuddled up with her book, drifting off to sleep to dream of her fairy tale.

To Be Continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Fate's a Step Away

"Love is in the air Ragna, you just have to search for it," Rachel's words bounced around in Ragna's mind after he was forcibly placed back into the 13th hierarchical city of Kagutsuchi. Ragna couldn't help but to hang his head as he returned to the normal, dismal excuse of an existence called his life. Regardless of being given a sort of new hope for the future, Ragna could still feel the burn of everyone's eyes on him, not sure when and where he was going to be attacked. There were so many factions and people that wanted a piece of him that he wasn't sure who was going to be right around the corner. Trying his best to cast aside the unnecessary thoughts, he decided to take in the sights and sounds of the delightfully busy streets. Ever since the new wave of monsters called 'Gears' began taking to the streets, a lot of areas were in pure states of emergencies. For some reason, Kagutsuchi was not one of them, giving everyone a peaceful sigh of relief.

"Tch...like I have any idea on where to look. Stupid rabbit…" Ragna sneered as he maneuvered through the crowd. Surprisingly, he didn't receive as many awkward stares as he normally did. In fact, he was surprised he could even travel the main road without anyone pointing him out. Thankful that something was in his favor for once, he stuck his hand in his jacket pocket to jingle around for some money to eat. Digging around deeper and deeper, the sinking feeling of starvation began to fill the pit of his stomach. Checking his other pocket and the one that he had sewn inside himself, things were beginning to look quite grim. His stomach erupted with an unnecessary growl, only furthering the humiliation of his pockets letting him down. As hard as he tried, every step that Ragna took along these familiar streets, Rachel's words kept repeating themselves in his mind. Over and over again it looped, causing Ragna to feel a bit awkward about the whole idea, especially since he had no idea where to begin. Even though Rachel's words were on constant repeat like a broken record, the vicious growls from his stomach gratefully interrupted it, if merely for a second.

"Alright enough pussy footing, I seriously need to get some food…" Ragna grumbled as he eyed the area in search of a food source. As he turned into any alleyway, he immediately stopped himself. From little memories he did have, alleyways were the prime place for getting jumped for food or even confronted. Snickering as he turned away, he was back on the street moving onward.

"Heh...not this time you kaka brat, I've learned my lesson," Ragna felt a small sense of victory as he marched onward. The relieving feeling of the crowds ignoring of his presence made for quite the pleasant search for a food destination. Recounting the change in his pocket, he finally came across a place that he could clearly afford. It seemed a little shabby; all of the wood that made up the stand was clearly warped and beaten by weather. Every curve of gnarled wood signified another day that it survived, giving off a homely feeling as he approached. Looking up, a crooked hung sign that said "Shoto's Noodles" dangled as if it were on its last leg of life. Shrugging off the dumpy scene of the shop, he decided to let the homely half take him in and onto a stool. Getting a closer look, the stand was absolutely tiny. Only 5 stools lined the counter with the outer two barely fitting next to the stand. Gently knocking on the counter, Ragna beckoned the chef's attention who was straightening up the menu signs overhead. Ragna smirked as the man jumped in surprise, quickly turning around to meet his face.

"So sorry about that, these menu signs just aren't hanging up quite right. Welcome to Shoto's, just take a gander at the signs behind me and we'll get you fixed right up," the man said. Half-way through his speech he found himself intimidated by Ragna's in beknownst scowl that he was wearing on his face. Clearly he didn't realize that Rachel's words were not only affecting him on the inside, but the outside as well. Ragna took note of this and tried to relax his face, the last thing he needed to do was draw attention to himself. Looking up above, he followed each little sign with his finger until he finally stopped on one.

"I'll take the Hot & Spicy special. I don't suppose you could add an egg and some beef to it could you?" Ragna inquired.

"Absolutely young man! That won't be a problem at all!" he man perked up and immediately got to work. Resting his against his fist, his eyes kept shifting between all of the signs and back out into the dusk covered sky. Taking in a deep breath he took in its surprisingly organized beauty. The light from the sun began to mix with the dark, gray clouds, causing its color palette to shift from simply orange and yellow, into a strange, relaxing violet that nicely accompanied the steady, warm wind that graced the stand with its presence.

"You know...it really has been a long time since I've been able to simply breathe. I've forgotten what it's like to have actual freedom. Being chased around by people and having a destiny that I angrily charge towards…I really have lost the sense of just being alive," Ragna confessed, wondering if the shop owner had caught his words or not.

"That's why my stand looks the way it does my boy. The freedom to roam and be where I wish. To take my expertise with me anywhere I wish to go, it's that freedom that makes my life so wonderful day to day. It sounds like you've got quite the heavy load on your shoulders, don't you Mr. Bloodedge?" the man replied, the last words catching Ragna off guard. He quickly turned to see if the man was going to jump him or not, only to be met with a smile and a beautifully coordinated ramen dish that smelt like heaven.

"Don't worry, I'm not one to judge. As far as I'm concerned, a customer is a customer. If everyone went around scared of all the people that could be considered bad, what would be the point of going out at all?" the man continued to smile as he rested his arms on the opposite side of the counter, turning his head to Ragna as he broke apart a pair of chopsticks. Ragna stared into the bowl in disbelief. Just from lightly poking around, he could tell that everything inside of it was made clearly from scratch. The broth stock, the noodles, it all smelt like food you'd typically only find in high dollar restaurants. The other ingredients that were mixed in astoundingly formed into a visual work of art. Ragna dove his chopsticks into the bowl, catching a hold of pile of long strands of the noodles. Slurping them down, they were incredibly chewy, the kind that you could only achieve from something hand made. The man laughed as Ragna began attacking the bowl, his stomach began to override his edicate. Noticing that he was barbarously woofing down his food, he took a moment to sit back and chew it so that he could actually savor the culinary excellence that he had been blessed with.

"How do you like my 100 year old receipt? Pretty good right?" the man chuckled as Ragna gave him a satisfying nod.

"Why do you work out of such a raggedy stand when your food is this incredibly prepared? You could at least replace this cart with a much nicer one if you truly wanted," Ragna replied before returning back to his bowl of excellence.

"Like I said before, it's all about the freedom I have. Thanks to this ratty old thing I can turn all of my money towards my supplies. When you get to be my age it's not about living large or being concerned with finances. It's about enjoying life. Judging by the look you had on your face when you sat down, you're searching for that enjoyment that you crave so much aren't you?" the man's kind words almost caused Ragna to choke as Rachel's voice popped back into his mind for a moment. With a few light coughs, he quickly gathered himself back up. Deciding it was time to move on, he took in the rest of the contents and sipped down every single drop of the broth. Placing his bowl back down he turned to face the man once more.

"Is it really that obvious?" Ragna scowled. The man gave a confirming nod as he analyzed Ragna further, trying to pick apart his body language.

"Judging from what I see, I see a young man who desires to be loved. Someone who wishes to stop being alone and move forward with another. Am I close?" the man smirked as Ragna placed his money on the table. Embarrassed from the fact that the man was right on the mark, he turned away and huffed as he headed back down the street. As he passed the man he stopped for moment, sighs softly.

"Thanks for the food, take care old man," Ragna left him with those words and a wave of appreciation as he disappeared into the dusk filled streets. The man smirked and snickered as he walked away, slowing turning around to turn off the small stove that was built into the side.

"What a curious young man. He's not at all like the wanted posters scattered about make him out to be. I hope we meet again Mr. Bloodedge, and that you'll have found what you are searching for the next we meet," the man said to the open air. Ragna gave a good firm stretch as his delighted stomach jumped with joy. It had been some time since he had food so good, and he planned to stop by again one day.

"What do you know, I was actually able to enjoy a meal without being interrupted...it's kind of unnerving. I guess if someone decides to turn the corner and kick my ass I'll be ready for them for once," Ragna chuckled as he spoke to himself. Every Time Ragna had an incredible meal, is sense of self-image would throw itself out the window, leaving him to be a normal old person for a little while. However, being who he is, it never truly lasted very long. As Ragna left the busy street in search of somewhere to lay and rest, he witnessed a strange sight; coming towards his direction was an odd looking kid. He had a blue and white nun habit and strange blue and white clothes to match it. Biker gloves lined their dainty, frail looking hands as they held what looked like a long piece of paper that typically would match a grocery list. The strangest part was a large ring that hung around their frame with a few yo-yos lined its sides. It's not like he hasn't seen weird people around before so he decided to shrug it off and keep walking.

"Let's see...Ragna the Bloodedge...oh wow! This is the biggest bounty I've ever seen! It says here that he has slaughtered a countless number people, is behind terrorist attacks and...is a womanizer too? Man he's all around bad news isn't it?" the young kid said allowed. Since his nose was buried in his long list that he was carrying around, he didn't even notice that their was a person right in front of him. The kid jumped as he accidentally bumped into the person.

"I'm sorry about that! I wasn't paying attention…" the kid said as he looked up to see a man in a red coat and spiky white hair. As the two parted, it wasn't anymore than 10 steps before the kid realized that he had literally just bumped into the massive money monster that was Ragna the Bloodedge. He quickly turned and slid out his yo-yos. They began to spin like a set of wheels as he hopped onto them, rushing down the street to catch back up. Ragna sighed but appreciated the fact that the little runt apologized, which wasn't common in this day and age. As moved a bit further, he heard a very strange sound coming up from behind him. It sound like wheels on a remote control car heading right for him. He quickly turned around to see the kid leap off of them and began swinging them around in a wild manner in an attempt to strike at him. Ragna grumbled and unsheathed blood scythe, blocking and batting away the blows. The kid then landed effortlessly onto his feet, retreating his yo-yos and sporting a big grin.

"You're Ragna the Bloodedge aren't ya?" the kid called out. Ragna rolled his eyes and resheathed blood scythe, trying to play off that he wasn't.

"I think you've got the wrong guy. That bloodedge person looks hideous and goes around attacking women, you don't see me attacking you do you?" Ragna grumbled as another yo-yo came swing his way. This time he jumped back, growling as he bat it aside with his hand.

"Of course you wouldn't attack me, because I'm not a girl," the kid laughed leaving Ragna at a loss. Ragna honestly couldn't tell if it was a girl or boy, in fact, he wasn't sure how anyone possibly could. From the way he was acting, he had to be a vigilante of some sort.

"Kid, I'd suggest that you get lost. I don't like beating up children and you seem like a nice enough kid," Ragna grumbled, trying to maintain his cool. The kid laughed as started playing with his yo-yos, as if he were trying to mesmerize Ragna with their movements.

"I'm not a kid. My name is Bridget, and I'm here to steal your bounty!" Bridget grinned as he hopped up and down, psyching himself up for the fight. Ragna shook his head and placed his hand over his face with disgust.

"Are you seriously gonna make me beat up a kid? Because I won't be holding back!" Ragna barked as he unsheathed blood scythe once more. He got into his usual sword stand as Bridget swung his yo-yos around. Bridget quickly threw one towards Ragna, trying to catch him off guard. Ragna quickly dodged out of the way and began to charge Bridget, only to be clocked in the back of the head like a hammer from the yo-yo Bridget threw out.

"Shit...that actually hurt!" Ragna growled as he rubbed behind his head. Bridget snickered and grinned as he launched one along the ground, sending it flying right by Ragna's feet. Ragna glared down at the line then made his move, jumping up and swinging downwards onto the little bounty hunter. As Ragna swung down on him, Bridget retracted himself along the line of the yo-yo, making for a swift dodge was Ragna's blade clanged against the sidewalk. He growled and turned around seeing Bridget taunt him.

"Whoopsy, looks like missed!" Bridget laughed as he swung a yo-yo around, trying to wrap it around Ragna's frame. Ragna immediately leapt up and flew through the air towards Bridget changing his spinning trajectory as his sword changed shape.

"Blood Scythe!" Ragna shouted as it came down Bridget. Bridget formed his yo-yo into a pentagram style net to block the blow. Surprisingly though, Bridget felt himself being blown back from the impact. Ragna went in for a strong kick as Bridget threw out his yo-yos once more. One managed to knock the kick away while the other latched onto the air.

"Roger, let's get him!" Bridget called out causing Ragna to turn. Ragna was met with an odd teddy bear looking thing. As it grew closer to Ragna, it split open some and a saw blade snapped around and began to spin. Ragna clenched his teeth together as the grinding feeling of the bears buzzsaw shook his grasp like a hurricane trying to snatch it from his hands. He pushed it back then knocked it away with a firm swing. Turn quickly turning, energy covered his fist as he propelled himself along the ground towards Bridget. Bridget easily hopped back out of the fists reach but was surprised from the burst of dark energy that followed. Blocking it again with his yo-yo string, he felt himself being pushed back once more.

"Your swings are really strong Mr. Bloodedge! I can't believe how much they're pushing me back!" Bridget complemented returning both yo-yos to his hands. Ragna sighed as he rubbed behind his head once more.

"And you're little yo-yos hurt like a bitch," Ragna snarled as he readied himself once again. Bridget couldn't help but to giggle like an adorable little girl as he revved up his yo-yos and hopped on them. Ragna quickly hopped out of the way as Bridget came flying through, using the strings connected to them to turn and control his direction. Instead of leaping off of them like last time, Bridget came to screeching halt, causing a spark of fire to knock Ragna off balance. He growled as he was forced to step back, only to have another yo-yo being launched at his head once more.

"This is really irritating!" Ragna growled as he used the tip of his sword to knock the yo-yo away. Ragna shook his head as he noticed that he was the only one that was catching his breath. It was as if his opponent wasn't even trying, which really began to tick Ragna off. As Bridget threw out another yo-yo, this time Ragna swung his blade around to force his yo-yo to latch around it. As Bridget tried to retract it, Ragna leapt with it, flying in with a strong overhead kick that knocked Bridget off balance, causing him to urk in pain. Ragna then swung around and followed it up with a burst of his nox nyctores, knocking Bridget from the ground up into the air. Before Bridget had a chance to recover Ragna leapt into the air, jumping above Bridget. I sneered down at Bridget as he brought his sword down with vicious force, slamming Bridget to the ground like meteor. Upon landing, Ragna roared and gave a vicious swing around with his hand, shooting of a strong blast of energy. Bridget didn't know what hit him as he flew through air and found himself coughing violently as he collided with a tree. Ragna huffed loudly as he re-sheathed Blood Scythe, heading over his way to make sure the little squirt was alright. Upon arrival, he saw little Bridget hunched against the tree, passed out from the vicious attacks.

"Damn it...I guess I took it a bit too far," Ragna growled as he anxiously scratched the back of his head. In an act of kindness, Ragna lifted Bridget off the ground and carried him over to a bench that just happen to be lining the street they were on. Laying him out carefully, Ragna positioned Bridget so that he could rest comfortably upon the bench. As he faced in the direction he was leaving in, he stopped then turned his head towards Bridget. He had a slight feeling of being sorry for him but immediately shook his head and sighed.

"I did warn him," Ragna grumbled as he left off on his way to the next unknown destination. He thought to himself and questioned how and where Rachel's words would ring true, but little did he know he'd soon meet an angel falling from above.

To Be Continued...


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Catching a Shooting Star

"My name is Chronus. I am the acting leader for the Post War Administration Bureau. I've come here to offer a trade in services for an important matter that we face. I realize that we aren't on very familiar terms, but we, the Post War Administration Bureau would greatly appreciate the NOL's assistance on this important matter," the mysterious man asked a man that sat across a desk curiously. His face was hidden behind a solid steel mask; the roman numeral for the number 4 was embedded between his eyes, the eye sockets of the mask were large squares, with only glowing yellow eyes shining through them. He wore a large trenchcoat and a large brimmed hat that could easily cover the upper half of his face were he to lean forward. Sitting across from him was none other than Captain Hazama, the head of the NOL Intelligence division. With a crude smile, Hazama placed his elbows up on his desk, clasping his hands together in a bored gesture as Chronus's droll flew past his ear.

"I believe you are speaking to the wrong person Mr. Chronus. I suggest you redirect an appointment to the Imperator for her to hear your proposition," Hazama smirked as his words drenched themselves in sarcasm and foolishness. Chronus's demeanor nor his body language faltered an inch at his reply.

"I'm well aware as to whom I am speaking to, Yuki Terumi. I would suggest that you don't take myself or the PWAB lightly when it comes to pressing matters that need a higher power of help," Chronus's words stung Hazama's ears, causing his carefree expression to snuff out into a face that could only be described as deadly.

"I'd suggest that you keep that identity knowledge to yourself before you find yourself in a ditch somewhere. I don't know how you had permissions from the Imperator to be here, but I'd suggest you watch how you speak to me," Hazama's voice waned as his nerves were tested. Again, Chronus showed absolutely no signs of weakness, intimidation or any form of flinching whatsoever. Chronus reached into his coat revealing a manilla envelope that he then slid on the table in front of Hazama. Hazama then snatched it off the table and tore it open, revealing documents with large photos to match. Skimming it briefly, there was an image of an odd looking girl with strange wings and a tail. The descriptions that filled the page described her risk rating and everything else that made her dangerous to society. Hazama shrugged it off and tossed the papers back onto the table before leaning back in his chair. He sat there and thought for moment, wondering what target he could request of him. It took no more than 5 seconds before Hazama smirked and popped up in his chair.

"Let's see if you are all talk. I want you to capture Ragna the Bloodedge for me. I'm sure you've heard all about him seeing he has the highest bounty on his head of all time. And let's make things a little more interesting; if you manage to capture Ragna the Bloodedge before we capture this "thing" you have requested, I'll be more than happy to give you a private audience with the Imperator herself. Here, have a poster," Hazama bartered with grand promises before tossing the crude wanted poster of Ragna at Chronus. He brushed through it quickly then returned his glare to Hazama

"And if you capture her before we capture this Ragna?" Chronus replied. A grin spread across his maniacal, yet calm face as he quickly figured out the ultimatum.

"You're organization is going to be my little lap dog from now on," Hazama snickered as Chronus continued to give him his emotionless glare.

"This offer is simply juvenile, but alas, I shall accept your proposal. You have one week to retrieve your target, after that, these terms will become invalid," Chronus's voice added on another level of stern emotion before turning his back and leaving the room. Hazama put his feet up on his desk, continually looking over the information that Chronus had delivered to him. He pitched it back onto his desk and dropped his feet to the ground as he grabbed a hold of the phone next to him. Quickly dialing the familiar number, he then placed the phone up to his ear waiting for a response. After two rings, a clicking sound came from the other end of the phone.

"This is Colonel Relius," the voice sounded off. His usual overserious, grumpy tone emitted itself through the phone as Hazama prepared his briefing.

"Guess who," Hazama teased, causing a disgruntled sigh to come from the other end. Hazama couldn't help but to keep his mischievous smile on his face.

"Terumi," Relius replied giving Hazama a dorky sense of satisfaction. As serious as Relius was, he found it entertaining from time to time to mess around with him over the phone.

"Bingo! You've gotten quite good at this guessing game," Hazama continued to antagonize him, only to be disappointed with a calm and collected response.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of you calling me?" Relius asked in return. Hazama's eyes darted to the documents and photos of Dizzy sitting on his table as he replied.

"You're going to love me for this one. So do you remember about those gear things that the other world brought over? Well, it turns out that we have been put in charge of capturing an especially dangerous one," Hazama's words caused a spark of interest to swell up in Relius's mind as he took in the information.

"Oh?" Relius gave a quick reply. Hazama saw this circumstance as a form of fishing as he probed around Relius's curiosity.

"That's right. All we have to do is retrieve it quickly before that other organization thing captures Ragna the Bloodedge. That PWAB place, you read the briefing. I'm sending out officers to immediately look for her, but I would like to use some of her expertise to track her down and well...you can have a new test subject if we succeed. I'm sending a copy of her info to you as we speak. What do you say buddy? You in?" Hazama finished his proposal, giving Relius a vague smile on his face. Hazama heard a gentle laugh behind Relius's lips as the info came through his screen that sat neatly on one of his work tables.

"Most intriguing...I look forward to experimenting on such a fine specimen. You have my interest Terumi. When the time is right, I shall offer my assistance to you. But for now, I am in the middle of experimentations. Farewell." the call ended with his final word, allowing Hazama to leave the conversation with a fit of sadistic joy. He then hopped up onto his feet and stretched out his limbs. Just then a knock came from his front, followed by the squeaking of his door hinges, revealing Tsubaki Yayoi entering inward. Hazama walked around to the front of his desk then lazily leaned up against as Tsubaki made her way to him.

"Tsubaki Yayoi reporting" her loyalty and stalwartness was enough to give Hazama an urge to cough up, but because of this fact, she was easy to manipulate. Taking a soft breath he raised his hand and lowered it, putting Tsubaki at ease.

"I'm glad you came here on such short notice Tsubaki. We have just received an urgent mission. That um...organization that calls themselves the Post War Administration Bureau has requested our assistance in capturing two separate targets. The first is Ragna the Bloodedge, which as you know requires quite a bit of caution. The other is a what are they called...a gear thing called Dizzy. Here's a docea on her including pictures and all the information you'll need to know when approaching and capturing her. You are to deploy yourself to Kagutsuchi immediately; failure of this mission will not be tolerated I'm afraid, so I'd suggest you approach this with extreme caution. You are dismissed." Hazama forced the "official" sounding orders from his mouth, giving the golden girl of their forces a task worthy of the "Imperator's praise". Without a word, Tsubaki saluted then immediately left his office with haste, letting the doors close on their own behind her. Hazama cackled at her blind idiocy as he prepared himself to get a move on.

"It looks like I better get to work," Hazama chuckled as he pushed off of his desk and onward towards the door. His sadistic grin ceased to leave his face as he shut his office doors behind him with a click.

xxxxx

With the return of the sun to signify the next day, Ragna found himself covering his blinded eyes with his sleeve as he stretched out on his rather uncomfortable bench that he had used as a bed over the course of last night. Unfortunately, this was the norm whenever he didn't have the strength or time to leave a town/city by nightfall. He also hated it due to the fact that he'd be an easy target for vigilantes and bounty hunters to get the jump on him, but so far his luck has held out. Looking around he noticed that he was in quite a populated area, which was a miscalculation on his part as finding his next "bed". The moment he noticed this, he immediately hopped onto his feet, grabbed his sword, and dashed out of the area before anyone would know better. He grabbed onto the corner of a building and used his strength to launch himself into the closest alley way and out of sight.

"Damn it...that was way too close…" Ragna groaned as he took a heavy sigh. Contrary to the whole gear incident catching the attention of most defensive organizations, he was still constantly on guard, especially after his confrontation with Bridget. He latched his sword onto the back of his belt and folded his arms in a huff as he rested his back against the building wall. Suddenly, he caught wind of his name being spoken from around the corner to his right. He immediately clung to the wall and edged over a little closer to catch the conversation. To his surprise, at a closer hearing, didn't sound all that human, but more robotic in nature.

"Have you seen the man known as Ragna the Bloodedge? I am unit RK-02 from the Post War Administration Bureau and we currently conducting a search for the wanted criminal Ragna the Bloodedge," the electronic voice sounded. Taking a peak around the corner, Ragna noticed the civilian in question sporting a look of terror; he then turned his gaze over to the talking unit. It had blonde hair, a large white trenchcoat-esque uniform and robotics for a face and ears. Suddenly, the robot's head turned towards Ragna and its eyes began to glow.

"Scanners picking up primary target Ragna the Bloodedge. Distance...10 feet away...initiating capture protocol!" the robot whistled, which sent Ragna into a sprint in the opposite direction. The sounds of steam and robotic hydraulics echoed down the alley way as the unit proceeded to pursue Ragna.

"What the hell is that thing?!" Ragna growled as he began weaving in and out of the people that blocked his path down the street. He looked over his shoulder to see it picking up speed, seeing jets pushing it from behind.

"That's not even fair…" Ragna groaned as he found himself arriving at one of the many look-out zones along the borders of the city, which unfortunately meant that he was essentially at a dead end. Ragna grit his teeth as he glared down the automaton, still trying to figure out what the hell it was. He then looked to its right, where another robot that was identical to it arrived and joined the stand off.

"RK-03 ready for combat" the units chiptune voice scrambled the air as the other unit replied with it. Ragna reached for the handle of his Blood Scythe, preparing himself for battle.

xxxxxx

In the engine room of the Mayship, Novel was hard at work tuning up what seemed to be a battered up hunk of an engine. It had been giving the ship trouble for some time, which had made their flying time shorter and shorter before they had to get refueling and repairs. Thankfully it has been running without too much trouble; Novel began humming a tune that could be compared to a sea shanty as the clicking and torqueing noise her wrench made a delightful and satisfying noise. She pulled out a rag and wiped the sweat off her brow as she rose to her feet.

"Man I need a breather…" Novel sighed as she slowly edged towards the door leading out of the room. Taking a final look back and smiling, she then gently closed the door behind her, leaving the room to itself. As the door latched shut, a strange sight took place. A portal-esque light shined brilliantly in the corner of the room with a very mischievous Hazama walking through it with ease. Removing his fedora, his spiky green hair arose from beneath it with his expression changing to match.

"Well well, this place looks like a real shit hole. According to the documentation this must be the Mayship...which means that gear Dizzy is here. Hmm...what to do what to do," Terumi thought aloud as he noticed one of the engines vibrating vigorously with small whiffs of smoke rising from it. A sick smile curled on his lips as he walked over to it. His eye narrowed down on it as he lifted up his foot to rest on the top of it.

"Aw this poor little engine, it looks like it could die any moment. How about I…" Terumi paused before a horrifically pleased express formed on his face and he stomped the engine inwards until there was a nice, large indention cast into it with his foot.

"...put you out of your misery...kehehe!" Terumi snickered as he followed the pipes and lines that flowed out from the engine, caving each one of them in at a point with vicious stomps. Smoke and a small fire began to form from the poor engine as Terumi returned his hat to his head.

"I'll just wait until she comes back to Earth before I capture he," Hazama snickered as the portal re-opened, allowing him to step on through it until it vanished. The door latch click opened and a happy looking Novel stepped inside with a nice cold soda in her hand. After stepping in however, it no longer than 5 seconds to register what she was now witnessing.

"Tell me April. Have um...have you ever been in love?" Dizzy asked quietly. April smiled back at her as she pulled out a small romance novel from her back pocket.

"Being in love with the characters in this book is about as close as I've gotten. I think May would be the better one to ask," April replied with a gentle laugh. Dizzy blushed lightly and laid back in her hammock while April rolled out of hers and out of the room.

"We have a problem everyone! WE HAVE A PROBLEM!" Novel shouted as she stumbled onto the main deck, quickly hitting its floor with a thud. Regardless of being brilliant mechanic, Novel wasn't exactly the most graceful member of the crew. Hopping back onto her feet, she quickly peered around the deck, finding absolutely no trace of the suave pirate in the area. She began biting her thumbnail as she moved onto the deck, trying to find April or even May. Sure enough, she spotted the two friends laughing and smiling as they shared a book with one another. Taking a deep breath, Novel charged them like a bull, desperately trying to get anyone's attention. Unaware that the deck had just been freshly wiped down by Sephy, she found herself sliding on her feet until finally lost her balance and hit the deck once more. The sound of her body nailing the ground caught both May's and April's attention, quickly causing them to hurry over to her.

"Are you OK Novel? That was a nasty fall you just took," April sighed as she helped Novel to her feet. Recovering onto her feet, she dusted herself off and took another hefty breath, trying not to panic.

"Where's Captain Johnny?" Novel asked nervously. Taking notice to her demeanor, both April and May looked at her awkwardly.

"What's going on Novel? You're looking incredibly pale," May sighed. Before Novel could force words out of her mouth, a loud, booming sound came from within the Mayship. The explosion shook the crew to their feet, causing the deck to become a living thing. Turning around, a door opened from the captain's quarters, revealing a yawning, groggy Johnny that made his way onto the deck.

"What's going on? Are we having an engine malfunction or something?" Johnny smirked as he saw Novel's face grow pale. Whenever anything would happen to the ship or its crew, it was as if Johnny already knew.

"YES! WE'RE HAVING AN ENGINE MALFUNCTION!" Novel shouted angrily and in a panic as she quickly hustled off to the engine room. Johnny shrugged off the panic that was thrown in his face and gave a strong, stern stretch of his arms and legs.

"Everyone to your posts. I hope that all of you paid attention during our practice drills because this is the real thing today!" Johnny ordered; each of the Mayship's crew members made haste to their designated areas, ready to try and give their all to apply a safe landing.

"I'm going to run by each station to take a headcount, be ready to answer the moment I call to you OK ladies?" Johnny ordered aloud as he began to make his rounds. The shaking of the ship caused Dizzy to stir awake from her pleasant slumber. Dreaming of her sir knight she may meet some day, she couldn't help but to wake up with a smile regardless of the terrifying shuffle of the crew stumbling around. Finally pulling it together, her face grew serious as she charged out of her bunk and onto the stairs that led to the deck. Before her eyes she saw a massive display of chaos that could be easily mistaken for people scrambling around a war zone.

"Engine 1 has overheated! BRACE YOURSELVES!" Novel's voice echoed over the ship's intercom as the ship shuddered violently, causing Dizzy to desperately cling to the handrail she was resting against. It was if the ship had been hit with a cannon the way it shook viciously. Dizzy slowly crawled her way onto the main deck to try and find Johnny or May. Looking around, she immediately found May assisting April in the helms room, the both of them using their strength to stabilize the steering wheel. Much to her surprise, she even saw Leap on the main deck. Leap looked and searched around as if she were desperately missing an important ingredient from her spice rack, but clearly it couldn't be something so trivial. Leap's eyes caught onto Dizzy's which caused her to hustle her large, elderly body her way.

"Dizzy, dear, have you seen March? No one can find where she is!" Leap panic'd as she caught her breath. Dizzy immediately shook her head as she grasped onto the railing once more.

"I'll help you look for her; I'll take a second look on the deck while you go check inside the ship, OK?" Dizzy commanded. Having analyzed Johnny's mannerisms and words when acting as their leader, Dizzy had taken a few notes of her own to try and sound like him when she felt it was needed. Leap held onto her hat and gave her quick nods, squeezing by her. Dizzy then hopped onto the deck and immediately started crying out for her.

"APRIL START LOWERING THE ALTITUDE! I'M TRYING MY BEST TO KEEP THIS ENGINE COOLED!" the intercom crackled with the loud sounds of one of the engines as well as Novel's voice. April and May messed with the controls and used their strength to steady the wheel once more as the Mayship caused a scare with a quick drop in altitude. Dizzy moved down to her hands and knees to better balance herself as she prowled the deck. As she approached one of the storage cabins on the deck, she could hear soft cries for help coming from within one of them. Dizzy immediately opened the door to see March curled up in a ball with her beloved stuffed penguin in the corner of the room, crying from fear. Dizzy immediately made her way to her and smiled.

"Don't worry March, I'm here for you. Let's get you back inside the ship where it's safe OK?" Dizzy kindly called to her, causing March to grab onto to Dizzy as if her life depended on it. Brushing her hair softly, Dizzy then made her way out the door as she kept a firm grip around March.

"ENGINE 1 IS ABOUT TO BLOW, BRACE FOR IMPACT!" Novel's voice roared over the intercom, immediately being followed by the sound of a ferocious explosion from the right side of the ship. The ship shook like a massive earthquake, causing Dizzy to lose her footing. She coughed in pain as her wings bent against the deck with her back following them with a crash. Dizzy kept a tight hold onto March, refusing to let go as she tried to get back onto her feet.

"A-Are you OK March?" Dizzy coughed, forcing a smile on her face to try and keep March's emotions under control. March gave a nervous nod as Dizzy finally made her way onto her feet. She quickly hustled to the steps, finally arriving to their destination. Unable to use her hands, she turned and latched her tail around the handle, quickly pulling it open as she laid March back down on her feet.

"Go to Leap OK? She'll make sure you don't get hurt," Dizzy smiled and March a pat on the head. March shook her head vigorously and gave Dizzy another hug before waddling inside the cabin. Letting go with her tail, she turned and shut the door, latching it from the outside so that it wouldn't blow open. Sighing in relief, she made her way back onto deck, this time trying to find Johnny to receive some orders of what she could do to help. Sure enough, Johnny hopped down from halfway up the crow's nest, landing gracefully on his feet as he kept a hold on his hat. His head turned and noticed Dizzy running his way.

"Johnny! What can I do to help!" Dizzy called out to him. The deafening sound of the rumbling engine continued on, causing her voice to fall short. Johnny began to head her way when suddenly another sudden tremor shook the ship, this time causing the whole ship to vear to the side. Johnny's eyes widened as he saw Dizzy being flung off her feet, with the sight of her being sent over the railing that guarded the side of the ship.

"Dizzy!" Johnny yelled as he quickly ran for the side to see if she grabbed a hold of anything. He tackled the guardrail harshly and threw his head over the side of the ship, only to find Dizzy barely hanging on to some bars on the side of the ship.

"Hold on Dizzy! Just hold on as hard as you can!" Johnny shouted before running into April and May's panel. He shoved them both out of the way and used all of his might to try and stabilize the ship's descent.

"Go help Dizzy! She's barely hanging on to the starboard side of the ship!" Johnny growled, causing April and May to immediately scramble out of the cabin and immediately to the starboard side. They both ducked half their bodies under the railing, immediately throwing out their hands for Dizzy to grab onto. One after the other both April and May got a firm grip onto Dizzy's forearms, using all of their strength to help drag her back on board. Johnny struggled to maintain the wheel in a steady position, even his full might was fighting against increasing wind speeds and constant drops in altitude. Trying to lower the altitude, he felt the ship's wheel get away from him for a moment, causing the ship to make a quick dip forward. May and April were both thrown off balance as the ship made a sudden nose dive, causing their grips to loosen. Dizzy screamed out for their help as she tried to use the bars for footing to try and climb clanging sound of April's head banging against the top guardrail caused April to jerk, causing her to lose her grip and fall onto her back. May tried her best to hold on with both of her arms, only to have the pull of the wind yank Dizzy's grasp from her own.

"DIZZY!" May screamed as Dizzy felt her body being grabbed by the wind and being torn away from the ship. Dizzy couldn't help but to try and reach out, only to find her grasps catching nothing but the air.

xxxxxx

"Tch...looks like there's no avoiding it…" Ragna grumbled as he drew Blood Scythe, ready to combat the strange robots before him. Each one of them tapped a button on their legs, causing a compartment to open to the side. As each compartment opened, a sword came shooting out, immediately catching their hands. They both then dashed forward with the one on the right making the first move. The unit reared back then quickly swung its blade at Ragna as if it were propelled by a spring. Ragna immediately lifted his sword and parried it to the side, only to see a swing from the other one follow behind it. Ragna felt his legs lose balance as he fell back and hit the ground with a light thud before swiftly sliding back onto his feet. He noticed one of them form a rocket launcher from a compartment in their arm then immediately fired a sizeable projectile towards Ragna. He smirked as he rolled to the side, finally getting his chance to make a move. Immediately however, the other unit used its sword like a shield and blocked his swing with a loud clang. His armagus fused with his sword as he took a stronger swing at the unit, this time cracking its blade. With one more strong strike the sword then shattered, leaving the unit with nothing but a hilt. It made odd, sizzling laugh noises as its hand detached from its arm and shot power bullets that caused Ragna to lose a grip on his blade.

"Shit...what the hell are these…!" he cut his own words short as he noticed a strange sight out of the corner of his eye. No more than 100 meters above him he saw a falling object that looked to be in the shape of a person. Caught off by this, the units both made strong shots from their arms at him, only to have them be made inert with a powerful gust of wind. With a quick, bursting gale of wind, Rachel Alucard made her grand entrance onto the battlefield.

"My my Ragna. How could you be so impudent and weak as to let mere shells of beings push you around so easily. It's truly a disgrace to your name. Oh dear...I suggest that you go and catch that shooting star falling from the sky, because if you do with much haste, you might find the first piece of your puzzle that will make you whole; allow me to dispose of these vile contraptions," Rachel put the situation and bluntly as she could to Ragna, even giving him a tip of what he needed to do instead of staring at the object like and idiot. Ragna clenched his teeth tightly as he kicked up dirt as he ran for his life, trying to catch up to the objects landing point.

"Why the hell am I doing this?!" Ragna growled as he felt his body move for him. It was if the object was giving his body a tight squeeze to urge him on, dragging him off to fulfill Rachel's wishes instead of his own. The closer he got, the clearer the image of the object came to be. Dizzy clenched her eyes tighter and tighter the closer to the Earth she became. She tried to compel Undean and Necro to help her descent but her falling speed was far too great for them to make a difference.

"Please...anyone...please...help me!" she screamed in her mind as she saw the ground catching up to her. Suddenly, her eyes caught onto a man dressed in red dashing towards her with incredible speed. Clenching her body and eyes tight, she braced herself for impact. Ragna yelled out loudly as he leapt to catch the now apparent girl-type thing to keep her from cratering the pavement. Dizzy's tears then twinkled in the wind as her eyes clenched tight in fear of her own demise, only to feel a strong, tight grasp preventing her from colliding with the ground. Using all of his might, his arms grabbed onto her tightly with the momentum from her fall causing him to slide along the ground viciously until eventually crashing into a wall. Ragna coughed in pain as he held onto Dizzy tightly, trying to secure her safety. Dizzy opened her eyes to see a trembling man in red with his arms warmly around her. Catching his attention, he clenched one eye shut with the other locking onto hers.

"Hey...you...alright?" Ragna's breath prevented a clear sentence to grace the air, but Dizzy caught the message all the same.

"As if from dream, the princess found herself falling high from the tower. The winds whisked through her beautiful hair and the winds carried her down as she fell with grace. Before she hit the ground, she was caught by the valiant knight who said that he would love her forever," Dizzy quietly recited as she continued to analyze him with her brilliant, lively red eyes. Her eyes began to shimmer in the light as tears formed within them and she held onto him and threw her face into his chest. Tears of joy began to drench the chest of Ragna's shirt, leaving him at a complete loss of words. His face grew puzzled with his body showing the same as he began to comprehend his current predicament. The crashing sound of machines being destroyed echoed from a distance in front of Ragna, signifying that Rachel had properly disposed of the garbage that had given him trouble. Listening close, the familiar clicking sound of highly risen shoes grew closer and closer until a small shadow was cast over him.

"It looks like you've found your princess, you have my congratulations," Rachel smirked as Ragna's face looked at her with both confusion and embarrassment as Dizzy continued clenching onto him tightly.

"What the hell am I supposed to do now Rabbit?!" Ragna barked at Rachel as she turned her back to him. Stopping in her tracks, a gentle giggle slid out between Rachel's mouth as she turned her head to peek over her shoulder.

"Have you not heard a single word I have spoken to you? From here on out, it is all up to you," Rachel's words slapped him in the face before vanishing in a brilliant squall. Ragna grit his teeth at Rachel's smug know it all words but then softened as he looked down at the poor girl clinging to him. He looked around with his arms held just past his head, trying to figure out the next step in his long journey of learning to love.

To Be Continued


End file.
